Temptations
by SootyPhoenix
Summary: Severus helps a muggle girl escape from the death eaters, and he has to protect them, but will his lie hold or will they work it out? Need a better name for it...suspended
1. Chapter 1

Her feet thudded against the ground. Her heart was pumping madly as the panic overwhelmed her. She ducked and dodged the fallen trees which blocked the unknown path which she followed. She had long since passed her limits but she kept going through sheer need, she couldn't stop or turn around or rest. She had to run. She had to. Her white dress snagged and caught occasionally but she ignored it as far as possible, although sometimes she was forced to pull the dress away from branches and twigs which refused to let go .She looked back searching for the strange cloaked men and the lights which damaged things where they hit which seemed to come from the sticks they held. She slipped. Skipped across some wet leaves and the final remains of her breath forced out of her. She had to stop. Her body ached and her lungs felt like they were burning and close to bursting point. She pushed herself up of the ground with the remains of her strength but could do no more than that, it was too much. Her heavy breathing masked all other sounds around her and she knew that they must be close by, they must know where she was sitting, alone and vulnerable. Her emerald eyes searched the trees franticly and she jumped at a black shape moving quickly blinking against the sunlight which blinded her when she moved. She looked again and spotted nothing and she wondered if she was able to relax now if she was safe, nobody had approached or harmed her, yet. Her shoulders slumped slightly as she tried to catch her breath. The long ripped dress hung from her body as she sat, it was stained with mud and blood but she did not care, it was not hers.

'You're safe now, Alicia' she jumped at the voice and attempted to rise to her feet but she collapse almost immediately as her legs refused to hold her up any longer. She looked around wondering why she recognised the voice and it became immediately clear, the man wore the same heavy cloak which the men who captured her and her eyes widened with shock. She gulped, she managed to get away once but she did not think it possible again, she had no energy anymore and they would know how to prevent it. She did not really know how she managed it the first time. She opened her mouth to scream but no sound came from her lips. Her throat felt rough and burned her as punishment for the attempt. A faint throb from her wrist reminded her of the torture which she suffered and she wrapped one of her hands around the red marks on her wrist from the chains which had been tied tightly around her soft skin and had dug roughly into her flesh. He moved closer to her with his hand outstretched and she flinched away from him, having no energy for anything more. He ignored her movement and took hold of her wrist, pulling it gently so that he could view the damage properly. His hands were cold and rough against her flesh but he handled her gently, like someone would a precious vase or small child. 'You are lucky' he stated looking at the marks and she considered his words, she was lucky to get away from them, lucky they had made a mistake and she could get out. Oddly she began to think about his voice, it was soft and velvety and somehow it made her feel safe, like nothing was able to hurt her anymore, it was almost intoxicating to her his soft voice. She shivered from the biting cold which cut through the thin fabric of the white dress which they had forced her to wear before chaining her to... something she could not remember what and they... they must have been cutting her flesh because the dress was cut in places and blood had soaked into it but they hardly touched her. Her body ached from the marks and bruised which they had given her and she wondered at their lack of closeness, how could she have gotten marked when they had not touched her? Severus regarded her expression for a moment while he was inspecting the marks which littered her flesh with his oddly gentle hands. 'Magic exists' he said and she looked towards his black, emotionless eyes with confusion for a moment as the words sunk in and made sense. She should have called him a liar, she would have in any other situation, but it made sense in her situation, it made perfect sense.

'Why are you telling me? Why did they let me see?' She asked her voice horse and barely more than a whisper but he heard her anyway. She could feel tiredness start to seep into her bones but she forced it away so she could hear his response.

'I could erase your memory, they could I suppose but they planned to kill you' He spoke like it was the most obvious thing in the world and like he was telling someone they failed a test and she had to restrain a giggle, he somehow did not seem the sort of person to appreciate it. He was comforted by this however as he worried that he would have to erase her memory, he was glad she was so calm about it. 'Severus' she called as she leaned towards him feeling tiredness overwhelm her now that she had calmed down.

'yes?' He was not really paying attention to her anymore but was glad that she was able to speak again.

'Thank you' she whispered allowing sleep to overtake her. She allowed herself to fall against the strange man who was tending to the wounds on her body feeling safe for the first time in days. It was strange but she felt safe and secure with this man, she could not have explained it if you asked her but she just knew that he would not hurt her.


	2. Chapter 2

Alicia's emerald eyes fluttered open and she looked around the room which she was now in, she had no recollection of being moved but she must have been, she wondered how Severus had managed to move her without her waking but the thought only remained for a moment, a second .The room was flooded with bright sunlight and the bed was covered in different shade of green. The few furnishings which decorated the room where wooden but had elaborate decorations craved into them, the wood gleamed in the light as if it was well cared for and polished often. Flashes of the night before started to fill her mind as she examined the room surrounding her, the woods she could not escape no matter how far she ran, the black eyes of her saviour. She remained still for a moment revelling in the wonderful silence until her limbs began to complain at the lack of activity and she stretched wondering if she would be capable of standing up any time soon, she knew that some serious damage had been done to her by those men. Remarkably she could no longer find any of the bruises or cuts that had been inflicted on her and she wondered how long she had been asleep in the large airy room, a few days at least she reasoned. She noticed the dress she wore had vanished and been replaced with a pale blue dressing gown and a flicker of anger crossed her mind at the invasion of privacy but a part of her was glad that she would not have to deal with the gown, it was impossible to get on even when intact and she did not dare consider how impossible it was to remove from a sleeping person, magic. The word started to circulate her mind, dominating it as she considered, life must be easier for him, for her saviour, Severus. She returned her mind to the room. It was scarcely decorated but the few objects were well placed. The wardrobe was engraved with small, delicate flowers and vines between them. She forced her eyes shut to block out the invading light and she heard the faint click of the door open.

'Good evening' a soft voice called from the doorway and she opened her eyes to look at the dark form which stood tall in the doorway. Severus moved forward into the light and closed the blinds slightly so that the sunlight was not as piercing and Alicia was grateful for his actions, something which kept recurring. She smiled at him.

'Good evening' she cleared her throat in an attempt to sound normal but her throat was sore and rough from the lack of fluids she had consumed since... she could not remember when she was last allowed something to drink. She heard a clink as Severus placed a glass of clear liquid on the table and Alicia sat up and reached for the glass. Severus sat down beside her on the bed as she gratefully drank the liquid, a faint smile was on his lips, he knew that it was not water but also that the muggle would not accept something which did not resemble water. 'Thank you' she whispered turning her emerald eyes to Severus, the smile was still evident on her lips.

'You are not to leave this house without me' His voice was no longer soft but had a dangerous tone to it and she was surprised by how quickly his voice could change.

'W... why?' She stuttered feeling slightly uneasy now as her mind picked at his word like vultures to an abandoned corpse.

'Those men think you are dead, or will be soon. You cannot be seen until I can arrange a new identity for you' He growled and Alicia thought for a moment before nodding, Severus had a remarkable way of being highly logical, although he seemed to keep it to himself often. 'A friend of mine will bring some clothes for you later' His dark eyes wondered for a moment down her body and she had to resist a smile as she noticed this, the man in front of her was dark and secretive and it seemed almost like a compliment for just that simple action.

'Am I allowed to meet her?' It sounded stupid, even in her head, but at the same time it was logical, if she had no choice but to remain a secret could she socialize? She gulped, she had lost everything. She felt numb for a moment as the realization struck her.

'Yes' Severus whispered but she barely registered the word as she thought about everything, everyone that she would never be able to see again. Tears started to form in her eyes after a moment and they fell uncontrollably down her face. Severus watched her uncertainly; he had no idea how to behave around upset people. He swallowed in nervousness and awkwardly placed his hand on her shoulder, as a form of comfort. Severus jumped as she fell against him her body being shaken as she sobbed. He felt strange as she lay against him her sobbing slowly subsiding and eventually they vanished completely. After a moment he shifted her hair to check on her face and found that she had fallen asleep curled up against him, a faint smile flickered against his lips as he gently ran his fingers through her mid length, brunette hair and he considered things, he had to change her appearance to help hide her, it was an inevitable thing which he would have to talk to her about. Her hair had to be changed, long, curled and blonde he was thinking, if she agreed, and her eyes... he stumbled at the thought, she had stunning emerald eyes and he could not, would not change that. His thoughts began to wonder, those emerald eyes had haunted him all his life, tormented him, and now they were back once again in the form of a muggle who he managed to save. He wondered for a moment if Alicia and Lily were related in some way. Shifting from the form curled against him snapped him out of his thoughts and he settled himself down to rest. He forced his mind clear to allow himself to rest and soon the calls of sleep found him and pulled him into the peacefulness of sleep.


End file.
